


A metaphorical tower and a life of duty

by redsnake05



Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: F/M, First Time, Romance
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-02-05
Updated: 2017-02-05
Packaged: 2018-09-22 04:33:11
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,264
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/9583808
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/redsnake05/pseuds/redsnake05
Summary: Neville is stuck in a life he feels he should lead, while Luna is living as best she can with the memory of darkness. A chance meeting, a reserve in Wales, and some time to see clearly and live freely is just what they need.





	

**Author's Note:**

  * For [Gelsey](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Gelsey/gifts).



Neville filled in the last of the interminable checkboxes on the Prohibited Goods Confiscation Form 22A/3-7 and initialled it. He looked at it critically. Some of the ticks were more like question marks, but he had stopped caring halfway through the Search Warrant Execution Form RF-83/2 about ten minutes ago. He signed the bottom of the form and dropped his quill onto his desk in relief. The form itself went into the evidence file. Tapping it with his wand, Neville sent it to the Active Case Files shelf and watched it squeeze into a non-existent space. He still got nervous as all the files bulged alarmingly every time he sent something there, but tonight he was tired and sure he wouldn't care if the shelves exploded in a mess of parchment and then caught fire.

Waving farewell to his few colleagues still at their desks, Neville made his way out of the cramped Auror offices and trudged to the nearest exit. He was going to get a beer before he apparated home. He thought he deserved one after a day of tedious routine. He was sure the forms got longer and more labyrinthine every day, and was deeply suspicious of the number of checkboxes the compiler seemed to find necessary.

Neville pushed open the door to the pub and looked around. It was blessedly free from both files and his colleagues. 

"Neville!" said a voice, and he turned to find Luna Lovegood sitting at a table by the open window. He smiled at the look of happiness on her face. Just seeing her made him forget half his irritation, and the hug she gave him in greeting made the remainder fade more. She was always unashamedly herself, and her delight at seeing him was clearly genuine. Neville found a small well of enthusiasm inside himself, and the tiredness of his day faded as he got a drink and joined her at the table.

"You look happy," he said.

"I am," she said. She looked at him in that vague, slightly indefinite way of hers, that he knew concealed a sharp sense of observation for the things she thought were important. She didn't say anything about how he looked, for which he was grateful. He felt tired and rumpled and cynical, and, for the first time in months, he realised both how deep it was and how wrong it felt.

"I've just been working out some details for a business trip," she said instead. Neville was intrigued. He couldn't begin to imagine how Luna and business went together, but he wouldn't make the mistake of underestimating her.

"It's based on a Muggle thing," she said. "People go on holiday to do volunteer work." She described the concept and Neville found it fascinating. He loved the idea of witches and wizards hanging up their everyday robes and finding work to do that was both necessary and satisfying, but not having to commit to lengthy periods of time. 

"It's a great idea," he said, and Luna smiled. 

"You could come with me," she said. Neville blinked, momentarily speechless, and she continued, "My next trip is to a place in Wales, and I could do with a herbology expert to advise on the state of the gardens and the likely range of tasks. It's supposed to be where Merlin awoke to his magic."

Neville didn't doubt that her invitation was genuine, but his lips were already forming a polite disclaimer - it was impossible, she didn't mean it, he was too busy - when she leaned forward and looked at him sharply, with no sign of her usual vagueness.

"You're not happy," she said. "I can tell. You're doing what you think is right, but when was the last time you did something for yourself? You're setting yourself on fire to keep the world warm, and when was the last time that ended well for anything but a phoenix?" 

He stared at her, mouth open, and she patted his hand. "Don't think I won't guilt you into doing this for me, if I have to," she said. "And don't bother saying you're not interested, either, or too busy. The Aurors can manage without you for a week, and I'm sure you have time owing."

Neville didn't even attempt to argue. He closed his mouth and lowered his eyes. He felt like Luna, in less than an hour and almost completely unaided by beer, had seen deeper inside the hidden resentments and fractures of his life than anyone else had managed. He felt like he should be protesting, trying to convince her that his life was wonderful and fulfilling, but he was tired. Luna was herself, only, and unashamedly, and he wasn't completely sure he even knew who he was under the layers of duty and commonsense.

"We've got two weeks for you to do all the boring organisation you need," she said. "And, truthfully, I'll be glad of the company. I've been travelling a lot by myself, and I could do with someone to help me when things get too cold, or too dark."

Neville didn't ask any further questions. He was going. Luna's momentary look of fear, the way she hunched her shoulders defensively as she spoke, had done the final job of convincing him. They would go together, and he would learn about who he was when he wasn't doing his duty, and she would have someone beside her when she needed it.

Having decided, Neville entered into the practicalities of arrangements. Luna lost her hunted expression as they debated the vexed question of how many boots he would need and if he should bring his own garden tools. He'd never been to Wales, and he found himself imagining the mountains, and how cool and green they might be. He laughed as Luna told him of all the mythical creatures they'd meet, but not unkindly, or with disbelief. He found it easy to believe that they would find all sorts of things he'd never seen before. He finished his beer and went home, feeling something that he took a while to realise was excitement.

>>>>

Neville was accustomed to the vagaries of British weather, but he was still surprised to apparate into a dense bank of fog. He heard the pop of Luna appearing beside him, and immediately reached out to grasp her hand.

"I would tell you how beautiful it is," said Neville, "but I think I'll wait till this lifts, yes?"

Luna laughed, but it was a little nervous and she gripped his hand a little more tightly than was necessary. She slowly relaxed as they looked up at the standing stones that leaned together to frame the entrance to the reserve. The path was narrow and bordered with white rocks, and Luna kept hold of Neville's hand to pass through the gap. Neville felt the tingle of a ward over his skin and stamped his feet on the path to get rid of the feeling. Inside the gate, it seemed even the rocks were more alive with magic, and Luna squeezed his hand once before letting go.

They walked a few steps forward and a witch appeared out of the fog. 

"It's a thick morning," she said. "Welcome! You must be Luna and Neville? I'm Llyn."

Luna went forward and held out her hand for a greeting. Neville followed, and was heartened by the callouses and roughness that spoke of hard work. 

"Come in for tea," Llyn said, urging them forward to where a tiny cottage was just visible. "We'll be getting wet out here, for the fogs are really more like stationary drizzle than anything else."

Neville accepted his cup of tea and looked around the small room with unusual contentment as he let Luna talk. For all that he'd had to get up early and worry that he might need his back-up secateurs if he didn't pack them, that was just cover over his worry of what might happen with a week of doing nothing he should be doing. He'd twice had to stop himself from telling Luna he'd changed his mind, but, now that he was here, he knew he'd made the right choice. 

There were a collection of bulbs on a table pushed up under a window that should catch the sun, but had a slight cooling charm in place, and Neville leaned forward to look at them. He saw one at the end of a row that was lopsided, and reached out without thinking to soothe it back to growing tall and strong. He hummed gently as he looked over the tray, listening to the almost imperceptible answering noise of the tiny plants. 

"They like you," said Llyn. "That's good; they're fussy little things, these lilies. Alpine, you know, with the thin, tubular leaves. No known uses, of course, but they're on the brink of extinction over in the Muggle side of the national park, and it would be a shame to let them die out just because they're not useful."

Neville nodded his agreement. He could see what Llyn meant. Utility should not be the deciding factor in whether something survived. He suddenly found he had no desire to live in that sort of utilitarian world.

"Is there a greenhouse?" he asked.

Luna laughed as Llyn rubbed her hands in every appearance of delight, and Neville wondered what he'd missed as he'd looked at the seedlings.

"I'm hoping there might be soon," Llyn said. He paid more attention this time, as Llyn and Luna talked about the state of the reserve, its needs, and the mythical wakening of Merlin. The sun had burned away the mist by the time they finished their tea and went back outside, to walk along the little white-bordered path. The trees grew close, and the few buildings of the reserve nestled into tiny clearings rather like fairy homes in children's books. These small patches of sun and grass were little islands in a green sea. Neville found himself charmed by the place all over again. Even the sight of their hut - the visitor's cottage, Llyn said, though it appeared to be made mostly of mossy stones and a few fallen logs - did not dampen his enthusiasm. 

He and Luna were to stay here a week, and his fingers itched to be doing already. He could feel the damp, growing magic all around him, and the sight of the small, tumbledown greenhouse and shadehouse had inspired him with the desire to see them in their incongruous iron and glass Victorian beauty, restored in the primitive wild of this place. 

Llyn left them on the little step of their cottage. She stood in a shaft of sun, and Neville saw her as if she was trying to soak up the warmth and turn it into strength.

"We need help," she said, looking up to where they stood on the step. "This place is wild and magical, and I know you can feel it, but every year there is too much to do and not enough hands to do it, and one day it will fade and be gone. Merlin might as well truly be dead, then."

She turned and walked back down the path, leaving them to go inside and unpack. Neville wasn't sure quite how Luna decided the business part of her enterprise, so he left her with her thoughtful silence and explored their living space. It didn't take long, though Neville was pleased to see that there was more holding the place together than had been apparent from the outside.

Luna found him in the little kitchen, unpacking their supplies and brewing another pot of tea. She leaned on the counter and looked out at the forest crowding up to the eaves. Neville supposed there must be charms in place, judging by the light pouring in.

"I like it here," she said.

"Me too," he replied. He waited to see if she would share more of her thoughts, but she just looked dreamy. It was a classic Luna expression, but he wasn't fooled. There would be sharp observation and analysis underneath it. He handed her a cup of tea and finished putting away the last few things. 

"Let's go for a walk," she said, "and then I know you're dying to have a look at that greenhouse. We need to get more of an idea of the sort of projects and expertise that this place needs, but I think it's beautiful. There will be all sorts of plants for you to hum with, so that will make you happy."

"Okay," he agreed. "What will make you happy?"

"Perhaps I'll find the rock where Merlin woke to his power," she said. Neville smiled, hoping she wouldn't find the mythical incubus of Merlin's parentage. "Perhaps I'll find two duelling dragons and an underground lake."

"I thought that was a tower," Neville said.

"You can't take these things too literally," Luna said. "It's already a metaphor for the kingdom, so who knows what I might find? I just have to look." She patted his hand, and he turned it over and enveloped her fingers. She squeezed back before drawing away, and he missed the warm touch of her fingers on his skin, but her smile was teasing and affectionate, and that was just as good. He liked the way Luna looked at him and really saw him.

Neville drank his tea and thought of all the things Luna might find by looking and really seeing. He was going to fix a glasshouse, and he would leave metaphorical towers and rocks and kingdoms to Luna, who was far better suited to them. He wondered if most of the glass would be salvageable.

>>>>

Neville had never really had much in the way of vacations before, but this was his favourite anyway, he had decided. After months of deadly serious form-filling and years of dutiful expectation-meeting, it was liberating to be here, even if he was working hard. The hours were a joy, from hiking up the mountains with Luna to fix some gaps in the wards and misdirection spells, to sitting with Llyn over a bucket of seeds and some homemade magical raising mix. Neville found it easy to be here. Neither Luna nor Llyn expected duty, only the work of his hands and as much joy and enthusiasm as he had to give.

Through it all had been Luna's quiet presence by his side. She'd had her own things to do, of course, but every time Neville had needed her, she'd been there somewhere. He found himself looking forward to seeing her. He found himself seeing more clearly than ever before under her indefinite surface to the quick, joyous woman underneath. She was, and always had been, just herself, but he could see the depths to it now, where others might still see only her eccentricities. He couldn't rid himself of the sudden realisation that she was beautiful. He just hoped his quiet presence, his offer of human touch and companionship, had made a difference to her at the moments she was scared of the darkness and the memory of her imprisonment.

He'd made the glasshouse his special project. He had only a week, but a closer inspection of the tumbledown framing had convinced him that most of the damage was repairable. For once, he wasn't concerned about whether it was perfectly finished or not. He knew Luna would only notice effort and progress, and Llyn would be delighted with any amount of both.

The weather was warm, with the fog having lifted early to reveal a clear blue sky and bright sunlight. No doubt it was still cool under the trees, but Neville was in the middle of the greenhouse, with the sun beating down on him. He pulled off his robes, and, after a moment, pulled off his shirt as well. Once finished, the greenhouse would have sensitive climate control charms, but for the moment the intact bits of glass were intensifying the heat. 

Lifting and sorting the rubble inside was best done by hand. Most of it was the remnants of benches and pots, and that was making a satisfying pile of debris outside. Pieces of glass, dislodged decorative flourishes and the occasional structural element were sorted. Neville found the necessary precision of the organisation satisfying in a way he'd never found fulfillment in the minutiae of his Auror job.

He carried out a large piece of glass, miraculously unbroken, and leaned it carefully with the others, casting a quick cushioning charm against any mishap. Footsteps sounded on the path behind him and he turned to see Luna approaching with a glass of water. She tapped it with her wand to cool it for him.

"Thanks," he said. He drank it down quickly, lowering his glass to find Luna considering him with a look that was far from her usual vague dreaminess. He couldn't place the expression at first, but then he realised that it was appreciation and interest, and maybe even desire. He looked away, embarrassed. He wasn't accustomed to being the object of such attention, particularly not from a woman he knew and admired. He thought, though, of the moments he'd looked at her and imagined the smoothness of her skin under his fingers, and the times he'd wanted to do more than soothe her momentary fears. He mastered his embarrassment and looked up, meeting her gaze. He hoped his expression accurately conveyed his own feelings towards Luna.

She stepped a bit closer, and took the glass from him. She threw it over her shoulder, letting it land on the grass unheeded, and Neville had to laugh at the action, so characteristically Luna and yet so unexpected. He caught her up in his arms and swung her round, listening to her own, answering laughter. He thought this might be the first time he'd been caught up in desire that was so much about joy and companionship, and he tried to put all that delight into their first kiss.

Luna pulled back a bit and smiled up at him. It was a brilliant, open thing, and Neville thought she looked like a star in his arms. She was bright gold and white in the sun, and her evident happiness warmed him right through. He leaned down to kiss her again, and this was more serious and intimate. She felt perfect in his arms, with her hands linked behind his neck and her body close to his. There was no hesitation between them, just the sensation of their lips and bodies together. 

Neville drew back at last, and he felt like his face was splitting in a foolish, delighted grin, but he didn't care. Luna didn't need him to be perfect or respectable; she was interested in seeing how he really was.

"I have to finish the greenhouse," he said, and could have kicked himself for the ridiculousness of his comment.

"You _want_ to finish the greenhouse," she corrected, with a gleam of affectionate amusement. "And I think you should do what you want."

He kissed her again, but softly this time, like a promise. He knew what he wanted to do, about a lot of things, but right now he wanted to finish with today's sorting and then he wanted to hold Luna close and kiss her again, and wrap her close in his arms. Luna touched his lips gently, then ran her hand down his shoulder and arm, lingering over the width of his biceps with a cheeky smile. She turned to retrieve his glass and go about her business, leaving Neville standing in the sun with his heart singing. He went back into the greenhouse and continued clearing. It seemed to him that all the ironwork gleamed a little brighter, and the glass was shinier, and he could almost see the space finished around him in his mind's eye. Perhaps he was learning to see things like Luna.

>>>>

Neville stood still again in the clearing before the greenhouse and contemplated the clean, empty shell in the lengthening shadows. It would still take work to fix, but you could see where the work would be done, now, and how. It was satisfying, even if he never got to take it much further.

He turned at last, and left his project behind him. He felt a little shy, wondering if Luna would be at their little cottage, and if it would be strange or awkward. He realised the ridiculousness of his fears as he stepped into the cottage to find it bathed in warm candlelight, with Luna wrapped loosely in a thin dressing gown, putting together the last bits of dinner. It was both familiar and domestic, as they'd been living in each other's pockets for the week, but deeply charged with new excitement, as Luna smiled radiantly over her shoulder and let her robe gape open a little more. He should have known this would be as simple as everything else between them. He stopped behind her and kissed her neck and shoulder, thinking about picking her up and putting her up on the counter for a proper kiss. He wanted to savour the anticipation, though, so he just swept his hands down her sides teasingly.

"I'm going to have a shower," he said. 

"Okay," said Luna. "You have a crown of leaves in your hair like a god, but you are a bit sweaty."

Neville grinned and reached up to touch his hair. He supposed it was reasonable that if Luna was like a bright slip of light in his eyes, he could be a forest god to her. He kissed her again and went into the bathroom. She had been right. How did one get caught by so many leaves without even being in the actual forest? He pulled them from his hair and hesitated for a long moment before gathering them together with some sticking charms into a rough crown. After his shower, he put the crown on his head and left his towel wrapped around his hips. He felt vaguely ridiculous, but Luna's delighted laughter reassured him. 

She gathered him close and turned her face up for a kiss. He was happy to kiss her. It felt natural to let their mutual friendship turn to desire. Neville lifted Luna up against him and this kiss was much harder, more passionate. 

"Do you want dinner now?" Luna asked. "It won't spoil."

"Good thinking," Neville said. "As it happens, I can think of some things I'd rather do before eating."

"Before dinner," Luna said. She slid off her dressing gown completely unselfconsciously and walked into her bedroom. Neville dropped his towel and followed, sure that this was something he wanted, no matter what his duty or his respectability said.

They got to their dinner much later. Neville would have been happy to stay in bed, but when Luna's stomach growled he pressed a kiss to the soft flesh and hauled them out of bed to heat up the food and serve it. He would repay Luna's bright insight with solid, warm dependability.

"I found something today," Luna said.

"Yeah?" asked Neville. "The tower and the underground lake?"

"Yes, actually," said Luna. She waited a beat, eyes steady on Neville. He didn't feel even a flicker of disbelief; if Luna had seen the real or metaphorical tower and lake, he would wait and listen to her explanation. "Well, the metaphorical tower, anyway."

"Tell me more," Neville said.

"I'll take you there tomorrow," she replied. "I want to show Llyn. If I'm right, then the reserve's financial future is assured."

"That would be great," said Neville. He meant it. His initial sense of charm with the reserve had deepened in the short time they had been here to love.

"Llyn has been saying she'd like to take on a second person here. Someone interested in studying herbology perhaps."

"Indeed?" Neville wasn't surprised, though he pretended indifference. Llyn had herself offered him a job on his second day.

"Of course, I would be placing a lot of volunteers here, and would need to keep a close eye on them."

"Enough, you meddling witch," Neville laughed, unable to stay serious any longer. "If you have indeed found a tower of Merlin which is not completely metaphorical, and there is, in fact, more money to be had, and Llyn does offer me a job, and you will come here to me despite the fog, then, yes, I shall jump at these chances."

"But your duty!" said Luna, in shocked tones.

"Sod my duty," said Neville. "You've helped me see myself, and I have no time for duty when I could be having this life I want."

"You've helped me find solid earth," Luna said, "so I think we're even."

Neville's instinct was to protest that she had helped him much more, but he swallowed that down and accepted it. He could be helpful without it being a duty, and that was just as wonderful a revelation as everything else. Instead, he cleaned the dishes and made a cup of tea as Luna whistled a little tunelessly and arranged the fire for the morning. It was a comforting routine, and Neville enjoyed it. The prospect that he might be able to continue it, that this might not be a charming interlude in a dutiful life, filled him with a quiet elation.

"Let's drink tea in bed," said Luna. He followed her to the bedroom, sure that he wanted to see whatever she had to show him.


End file.
